Happy Chinese New Year!

I’m ready for Chinese New Year

Poya House

This is my favorite store in Taiwan. It’s like if Walgreens and Target had a baby.

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With-the-Wind-Ear guarding Beigang

Matsu’s Guardian Demons in Beigang

Thousand-mile Eye and With-the-Wind-Ear are the demon sidekicks of sea goddess Matsu, who has many adherents in Taiwan. Apparently the both fell in love with her, and she told them that she would marry which ever one defeated her in battle. She prevailed over both of them, and the three became friends. These two guard the bridge in Beigang and light up at night. Chaotian Temple in Beigang is one of the oldest Matsu Temples in Taiwan.

One of my classrooms

This is what one of my classrooms looks like. I want to include everyday pictures to give those interested a look at normal life teaching in Taiwan.

Bubble Tea

I never had it before, so this was my maiden voyage. I had plenty of opportunities to drink it when I lived in Berkeley, but I just never got around to it.

I like it; it’s not dong gua cha (but really, what on this earth is aside from dong gua cha?), but it’s sweet and yummy and the little chewy balls are not unappetizing.

5th Grade English

I’m the white lady standing in the back.

The Kaosiang Duck

This thing is everywhere. An artist created a rubber ducky for the Taiwan Strait that was harbored in the Kaosiang Harbor. It’s a clever idea, IMO, until you see the damned duck in every store all the time. The duck was dressed in a cape because this picture was taken with some friends around Halloween time. I saw a duck today with a Santa hat. The duck itself (depending on whom you ask), exploded, deflated, or suffered air pump failure after the last earthquake off the coast of Hualian. It’s one of those ideas that isn’t a bad one, but brevity is the soul of wit, and there ain’t nothing brief about the Taiwanese appreciation for the duck, so I’m ambivalent about it at best.